A person who acquires English has access to all the things that that language makes possible.

Life, struggle, even amidst pain and blood and poverty, seemed beautiful.

In terms of language, English is very dominant vis-Ã-vis African language. That in itself is a power relationship - between languages and communities - because the English language is a determinant of the ladder to achievement.

I was wondering why I was put in prison for working in an African language when I had not been put in prison for working in English. So really, in prison I started thinking more seriously about the relation between language and power.

It was a revelation for me, in a practical sense, that you could write in an African language and still reach an audience beyond that language through the art of translation.

I'm more trying to connect; I'm more listening to people. Whatever I get is very meaningful to me.

I'm writing for those people in Kenya, but in Irvine and in New York.